PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Mary O'Riordan, Former CUNY Professor, on Antisemitism at CUNY
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Mary O'Riordan, a retired CUNY professor, testified about antisemitic activities and remarks occurring in CUNY classrooms, which she believes are partly fueled by the faculty union. She shared personal accounts and concerns about the promotion of anti-Zionist agendas in ESL classes and the union's involvement in BDS resolutions.
- O'Riordan highlighted instances where ESL students were allegedly asked to collect signatures for political petitions during class time.
- She expressed concern about the reinforcement of negative stereotypes about Jews among ESL students.
- O'Riordan called for faculty and their union to be held accountable for their conduct regarding anti-Zionist activities on campus.
Mary O'Riordan
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Thank you.
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My name is Mary O'Riordan.
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In 2020, I retired from 30 years teaching at CUNY, where I've been tenured senior faculty.
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I mainly taught ESL students.
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I published several papers on college access for ethnolinguistic minorities and how to best prepare them for academic success.
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When I worked full time at City Tech, I co chaired the CUNY ESL discipline council and regularly met with the vice chancellor.
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In addition before becoming a teacher, I was a human rights specialist at this New York City Human Rights Commission.
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From my conversations with faculty and students and from my time at the Human Rights Commission, I can tell you that anti Semitic remarks and activities have been happening in CUNY classrooms, I believe fueled in part by the faculty union.
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Last November, former colleague Susan DeRaimo told me that she had asked her ESL students matriculating at Lehman to collect signatures on a petition for a ceasefire.
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Mostly living in Spanish speaking neighborhoods, they would surely not be using English to do this.
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Students were deprived of class time and activities that could have helped them prepare for academic success to instead promote miss Du Ramos' partisan agenda.
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The time she spent on anti Zionist activities in class was also reinforcing negative stereotypes of Jews, which ESL students often bring with them from their countries of origin.
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In addition, she had been for many years an executive officer in the Professional Staff Congress.
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I then spoke to another ESL colleague at CUNY College, at at another CUNY College.
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It was Bronx Community College.
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She told me that she didn't see anything wrong with making students work on that petition and that she understood October 7th as the Palestinians must have been jealous of the success of the Israelis.
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As your college's grievance counselor, she too had been active for many years in the union.
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I then found that our union
Eric Dinowitz
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had not Thank you so much.
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Mary, can you can you please just finish up your final thought as your time has expired?
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Thank you so much.
Mary O'Riordan
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Yes.
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I then found that our union had not only passed a BDS resolution, but it passed for anti Zionist political education on campuses.
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I believe the faculty and their union must be held account accountable for their conduct.